 In The Expository Genius of John Calvin, Dr. Steven J. Lawson delves into the practices, commitments, and techniques that made John Calvin, the great Reformer of the sixteenth century, such an effective preacher during his long pastorate at Saint Pierre Cathedral in Geneva, Switzerland. Dr. Lawson identifies thirty-two distinctives of Calvin’s preaching, providing comments from Calvin’s writings, quotations from Reformation scholars, and examples from Calvin’s own sermons to reinforce his points. In the end, Dr. Lawson finds in Calvin a strong model for expository preaching and calls on modern pastors to follow the Reformer’s example.
Retail $15.00 | Ligonier's Price $12.00
Hardcover 5.25 x 7.5 | 160 Pages
ISBN 1-56769-085-8 | Released March 2007
Order Here for $12.00
Book Info Sheet
Table of Contents and Sample Chapter
High-Res Images: Front Cover | Back Cover
“Through an introductory study of John Calvin's preaching, Steve Lawson provides a practical homiletics refresher course that can be read in one evening, but should be read annually for lifelong impact. Factual yet stimulating, simple yet penetrating, The Expository Genius of John Calvin contains many scriptural and theocentric golden nuggets and hands-on practical tips for beginning expositors and seasoned preachers alike. May
God use it to revitalize Christ-centered and Spirit-empowered applicatory preaching in our needy day.”
— Joel R. Beeke, President, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, Mich.
“An infectious appreciation of the preaching of John Calvin from the pen of Steven Lawson. No one reading this volume can fail to appreciate the debt we owe to the Genevan Reformer. Lawson has consulted the best of current scholarship and has produced a comprehensive distillation of the contours of the Reformer’s preaching and, with it, a compelling advocacy of consecutive expository preaching. A magnificent achievement.”
— Derek W. H. Thomas, Professor of systematic and practical theology, Reformed Theological Seminary, Jackson, Miss.
“The cure for the ‘dys-exposition’ that afflicts today’s pulpits has been available for five hundred years, as Steve Lawson so clearly documents in The Expository Genius of John Calvin. Preachers reading this book will be moved to take to heart Calvin’s encompassing belief in the sovereignty of God’s Word—as to its total sufficiency and massive potency. Further, they will be inspired to pursue the deep, enriching paths of lectio continua. This is a beautifully written, powerful, and convincing book. It is a must read for all who aspire to preach the word.”
— R. Kent Hughes, Senior pastor emeritus, College Church, Wheaton, Ill.
"Calvin’s commitment to ‘the word of God,’ whether as inscripturated or incarnate in Christ, is well-known. What has not been given its due, however, is his high regard for ‘words’—both the words of the Old and New Testament in their original languages and of the preacher in his sermons on the sacred text. Steve Lawson’s study treats the second closely, and this is where this book will prove most valuable and is most urgently needed.”
— Hywel R. Jones, Professor of practical theology, Westminster Seminary California, Escondido, Calif.
“In this book, Steve Lawson has masterfully presented us with thirty-two keynotes that made Calvin the best preacher of the Reformation, all of them centered around the Word of God preached expositorily. He describes for us in a powerful and profound way how Calvin brought his congregation upward to gaze upon God’s glory as he preached verse by verse, then ended his sermons with prayers filled with the Word! Dr. Lawson is right in saying that because of the spiritual bankruptcy of our time, we need Calvins once again. I would make this book recommended reading in courses such as homiletics and missions for any serious pastor and student of theology.”
— Alonzo Ramírez, Professor of Old Testament and biblical hermeneutics, Biblical Reformed Seminary, Trujillo, Peru.
About the Author Steve Lawson is the senior pastor of Christ Fellowship Baptist Church in Mobile, Alabama. Dr. Lawson serves on the board of directors of The Master's College and on the ministerial board for Reformed Theological Seminary, and teaches with Dr. John MacArthur at the Expositor's Institute. In addition, Dr. Lawson has written numerous books, including Foundations of Grace and Famine in the Land: A Passionate Call for Expository Preaching. |
;)